Thoughts on the boys' name Woody if we have a son?

[MaxiMoomins]

Really struggling with boys names. My partner loves Woody and I’m trying to get on board. I think it’s cute but I don’t LOVE it yet..
How do people feel about it??

we don’t know the gender yet! 😁

Why would a name stop any one getting a professional job?

Surely @ithinkilikethislittlelife you're glad now that you didn't go with Beauchamp?

You and your son and husband, and other family, would have been correcting people's pronunciation constantly!?

Honestly I don't think many British kids (assuming you're in the UK) are going to be referring to Woody as an erection, especially in like 12 years time (when he and his peers will be prime piss taking age). I'm knocking on the door of 40 and never heard any of my peers use it in reference to thay, while I knew the term had that connotation it isn't the first thing that came to mind. Toy story, yes. Also the neighbours cat but that might be a bit niche.

Names are ever changing and in a multicultural society the MN viewpoint is that of a shallow, xenophobic cesspit. Basically anything that deviates from the norm of white and boring here is seen as a lifetime sentence.

If names ike Jonty, Ptolemy or Lettice are fine, why not Woody?

My first thought was erection…

Why are people so hung up on the erection slang when Willy short for William never gets this kind of grief yet is a far more obvious penis reference, and is, in fact, lauded on here? Posho snobs is why.

I like Woody. I have met two (plus been to Woody Cook's Dj set!), it's a cool name imo,

👏👏👏 you’re my new favourite person. @CharlieCooksBook

I'd go for a tree name like Ash or Rowan before Woody - though the idea of the real name being Edward and Woody being your family nickname is a reasonable compromise too.

I imagine if you posted a thread saying ‘thoughts on the name Willy for my baby boy?’, the thread would go the same way.

No

Are Ptolemy and Lettice fine though? I quite like Jonty.

In many professional workplaces, there are names way way more unusual than Woody. We have people working globally and it would be pretty unprofessional if we all sniggered at every non-standard-British type name we came across, given many of us are from all over the world with a full variety of names and also nicknames. Honestly, the more professional the workplace, the less odd an “unusual” name sounds.

Even chat gpt knows what this name means -

means an erection (a man’s penis becoming hard).

It’s informal and a bit juvenile, similar to saying “hard-on” in other English-speaking countries. You’ll often hear it in casual conversation, jokes, or teenage slang rather than formal settings.

Example:

• “He got a woody during the film.” (meaning he got an erection)

It doesn’t have a special different meaning specific to the UK—it’s pretty much the same as in US slang.

I know someone with a Woody. She's really wishes she hadn't used the name now.

I've met a few Dicks who wish their parents had chosen differently.

Woody Allen is actually Heywood. Which also has the advantage of the built-in Heywood Jablomie "joke". Based on the level of discourse so far, OP would probably find both of these factors a plus.

The best friend’s eldest daughter has a sausage dog called Woody. Personally, it would be a no from me, but if you and your husband like it then it’s up to you. The only opinion that ultimately matters is that of your child who will have to live with whatever you end up choosing.

Slightly better than Boner or Stiffy but still not something I'd inflict on a child.

In Australia he would be absolutely made fun of as it what boys call an erection.

I do like the idea of naming him Edward nicknamed Woody - it gives him options as he goes through life.

Awful.

A friend of DS’s is named Woody, sadly for him. The bullying has been horrendous. Toy Story as a child, penis jokes as a teen.

There is a Woody in my DD’s class. It’s not a great name but you clearly like it.

I think it has become pretty popular, there are two local to us. It did used to be slang for a hard on when I was at school so that would make me a bit nervous about using it.

It would be ok as a nickname, but Woodrow, Elwood, Oakley or Forest might be a better option as a ‘real’ name.

How many people (except for maybe a few very elderly men) do you know/meet who go by the name Willy nowadays? William, Liam, Will, Wills, Bill maybe; but Willy?!

"Hi, lovely to meet you - my name is Willy........."
Waits for a raised eyebrow/smile/smirk/laughter/comment... every single time

It's the same with Dick: you get plenty of men and boys known as Richard, Rick, Ricky, Rich... but again, it's only usually very old men who will happily go by the name Dick. In fact, even if they do want to be called Dick, they will find a lot of their emails never get through to the recipients, as they're either automatically blocked/quarantined or sent straight to spam.

Oakley just makes me think of Ned Flanders: "Oakley-doakley, neighborooney!"